Red Haze
by YukiwaFuru
Summary: AU. What if the Toad Sage never issued the prophecy? In a world where you must truly determine your own fate and anything can happen, how will Naruto decide what's right? Especially when all of the Kyuubi's chakra has been sealed in him. Discontinued, up for adoption (PM me.)
1. Red Horizon

Hey. New story time. What can I say? The last two chapters inspired me. Enjoy and let me know what you think. Thx!

Disclaimed.

He had nightmares for years after the first time he lost control of Kyuubi's chakra. He'd been at a park when he was four with other children, some of who were children of ninja, some of civilians. He was the only child unaccompanied, apparently. In reality, there was an ANBU around somewhere; he couldn't see him, but he could faintly smell the usual scent of a fully equipped ninja. The metallic tang of the man's kunai, shuriken and well-oiled ninjato, the slightest whiff of blood that never quite washed out of used ninja equipment and the even slighter undertone of the harsh soap used by shinobi to remove scent from themselves and their clothing. The scent of the man was one Naruto associated with death, an oddly comforting scent because Naruto's father smelled the same.

Although Naruto envied the attention the other children were getting from their parents, he knew why his couldn't be there. His mommy died the day he was born and his daddy was the Hokage and often busy. He didn't blame his dad though, since he'd heard time and time again how important his job was. He might have complained more even then, but when he'd finally asked his dad why he didn't have a mommy like the other kids, his daddy explained that a bad guy had attacked his mom while his dad was distracted protecting him right after he was born. Her wounds would have proven fatal anyway, but before she died she helped his dad defeat the evil Kyuubi. She was considered a hero in the village and his dad honored her name by giving it to him, making him the last Uzumaki in Konoha.

The other reason he was named Uzumaki was to keep Iwa from finding out about him. His daddy had made many enemies during the last war and if Naruto were openly acknowledged as his child, assassins would target him. Well, he had been targeted anyway, but not until he was three and not as often as he would have been otherwise. His parentage was an A-ranked secret in the village and something that was never discussed, but everyone knew anyway and so eventually there had been leaks. It probably didn't help much that Naruto lived with his father and sometimes spent his afternoons in the Hokage's office with him.

The assassination attempts had frightened Naruto badly, at first. Even though the assassins never got past the ANBU and Naruto's father's careful guard, Naruto could still hear the fighting and smell the blood of his would-be killers. He'd been inconsolable after the first one that his father had gotten involved in personally. His father had had to come and hold him to get him to calm down, even though Minato had been covered in drying blood at the time. Hence why Naruto found the scent of ninja with old blood on them comforting, assuming they weren't trying to kill him that is. So even at the age of four Naruto understood the necessity of not appearing in public with his father. More than that, he knew that Konoha had many enemies and that it was his dad's job to protect everyone the same way he protected Naruto.

He also knew that his dad's job is what allowed him to assign an ANBU guard to protect Naruto at all times. Naruto's mommy died protecting him and helping his dad do his job and his dad was always working hard to make sure Naruto was safe and had a safe home to live in. So Naruto didn't complain when his dad was busy a lot of the time, instead he felt grateful for his dad and mom and everything they'd done for him and wanted to be like them when he got big. That didn't mean that he didn't miss them, though, especially his mommy. His dad always told him how much like his mommy he was, even though he looked more like his dad than her. He wished that he could have met his mommy, but once his daddy had told him that if he worked hard, he might get to meet her one day after-all, so Naruto guessed he'd just have to wait for then.

But that wasn't what entertained Naruto's thoughts this day. Today there were an unusually large amount of ninja children at the park and a few of them were playing target with dull shuriken and straw targets that they'd brought along with them. You could always tell the difference between children raised by ninja and civilian children. It was in the way they moved and their posture. There was also a marked difference in their eyes. Children of ninja knew that their parents risked their lives on a daily basis. They knew that one day they would do the same and most importantly, they knew they could lose everything they loved one day out of nowhere, although some knew it better than others.

These ninja children were mostly older than him by about a year and looked like they might be entering the academy soon. Naruto wanted to join them, but he found himself hesitating at first. The one they were all gathered around at the moment had long brown hair with a strip of cloth winding underneath it and covering his forehead. He was wearing a dark brown yukata and woven thong sandals and had oddly blank, pupil-less white eyes. He looked unapproachable even surrounded by other kids, and Naruto was strangely nervous of facing the boy. Then he looked back at the target the boy was throwing shuriken at and forgot his hesitation. The boy didn't miss a single mark and Naruto wanted to compare his own abilities to those of the gifted child. So he waited until the boy paused in his throwing and walked up to him.

"Can I try?" He asked. The boy turned his head and regarded him with an unnerving gaze. Naruto tugged at the edge of his orange jacket nervously and looked back at the boy. The boy noticed this and shot his jacket a look of distaste. After seeing that he wasn't going to go away without a response, the boy asked grudgingly and somewhat snidely, "Can you throw?"

"Yes." Naruto responded politely. The boy handed him the pouch of shuriken he'd been using and stepped back wordlessly. Instead of watching, however, the boy stared off at the trees with disinterest. Well that was fine with Naruto. He was just glad that he got a chance to show people his age his skills. He usually spent his time practicing since his dad was away so often, and the only times he actually spent with kids his age were on the rare occasions he came to the park. Even then, he mostly just played tag and hide and go seek with the civilian children, although they sometimes didn't want to since he always won. He had met a few ninja children his age, but they never practiced these sorts of things at the park, saying that they had to do enough practicing at home already.

So since this was the first time he got to show off to other kids, he pulled out three shuriken with one hand and threw them all together, landing one in the target's straw forehead, another in its throat and another in its sternum. The kids around him were quiet for a second and then gathered around him, asking his name, who his parents were and where he'd learned to throw so well. When he said that his mom was Uzumaki Kushina, purposely failing to mention whom his dad was, they got even more excited. One girl, Tenten, even started gushing about how cool it was that his mom was the strongest kunoichi of their parent's generation and had helped the Hokage save the village from Kyuubi. He grinned broadly, enjoying the attention and feeling proud of his mom, although a little sad too.

Then, suddenly, the austere boy from earlier spoke, voice cutting through the chatter like a knife, "If she was so great, then why is she dead?" Everyone fell silent and Naruto stared at the boy for a moment, stunned, before getting angry. He knew the answer; his mom died because his dad had been protecting him and couldn't help her. He hated that this boy had touched so close to the truth and that the bastard was questioning whether his mother was a hero or not.

He stormed up to the boy, got in his face and yelled, "Because she was fighting a demon! And won! If it was anyone else, she would have kicked their ass!" He stared angrily at the boy, fuming. How dare he talk badly about a person who died defending his home!

The boy just stared at him impassively and spoke with condescension, "Wrong. She died because it was her fate to die." Naruto couldn't believe his ears; the boy was completely ignoring his mom's bravery.

"Maybe that's true, but she didn't have to die protecting the village! She could have left Kyuubi to the Hokage and lived a little longer! Instead, she chose to protect everyone and die!" he shouted at the cold boy. Why didn't he get it?

The boy sneered, "How nice that fate gave her a choice." Naruto was infuriated by this point and aimed a punch at the older boy. He easily dodged, however, and Naruto quickly followed after him. This continued for a couple of minutes, the boy sneering at him and him growing more and more furious. And as the chase continued, Naruto felt something change in him. He broke out in a cold sweat even as he felt his body heat up like he had a fever. His vision went hazy and red and he felt an intense ache spread throughout his body. More than anything, though, he felt rage like he'd never experienced before.

He quickly upped his pace and closed with the boy, but instead of dodging this time, the boy struck out at Naruto's approaching arm, leaving it dangling at Naruto's side uselessly as he clutched it in agony. For a second it seemed the chase was over, but then Naruto straightened up and attacked the boy with the same arm that had just been disabled. In his surprise, the other boy left himself open and Naruto got in a direct hit on the boy's jaw, knocking him to the ground. He didn't stop though and pounced on the larger boy, pummeling him into the ground all the while growling, "Is this fate too then, bastard, or did you bring this on yourself, you arrogant asshole? I can't believe my mom sacrificed herself so that ungrateful bastards like you could live!"

The other kids had long since backed away from the fight fearfully and even the parents were hesitant to get involved with the boy radiating the same chakra as the Kyuubi. Before they could decide either way, however, there was a yellow flash and Naruto felt a pain on the back of his neck. He started to lose consciousness and the last thing he heard was the boy beneath him croaking out of bloodied lips, "So then you know a little of what I feel, now."

When he dreamt of that day it was always the words of the boy he'd beaten that haunted him. That and the fearful look on the faces of the other children when he woke up a little later. The boy, Neji was his name, had to go to the hospital and Naruto was no longer able to go to the parks or playgrounds around Konoha without being chased away by concerned adults. Because of this, Naruto didn't have further interactions with children his age until he went to the ninja academy.

His father told him that he had the Kyuubi sealed inside him that day, as well as telling him that his mom had been the Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi before him. He told him about what really happened the day he was born and how they'd been faced with the choice of sealing the Kyuubi in Naruto entire or Minato sacrificing himself to seal half of the Kyuubi's chakra permanently, either one of those two options or Naruto's mother dying with the Kyuubi and it eventually coming back anyway. To guarantee Konoha's safety, they'd decided to seal Kyuubi in Naruto and Kushina had argued that it was more important for Minato to be there for Naruto and the village than to permanently seal half of the Kyuubi's chakra. Minato reflected sadly that she won all their arguments even to the end.

Minato listened to Naruto tell him what happened at the park and told him that Neji had also lost a parent, to prevent war with Kumo. He told Naruto that what happened wasn't his fault; that he was the first child Jinchuuriki of Kyuubi and that he didn't have the experience and strength that Mito-sama had yet nor the robust chakra that Kushina had been born with.

"I'm sorry, Naruto, we really didn't have a choice at the time." Minato sighed, hugging the sniffling boy on his lap. They were sitting on Naruto's bed. "I didn't expect the Kyuubi's chakra to manifest so early, I was planning to tell you when you entered the academy. I wanted you to live like a normal child for awhile." He shook his head and gently pulled the boy into a position where they were looking each other in their identical sky-blue eyes. "You may not have chakra as strong as your mother's, but yours is still stronger than normal. That's why your body can handle the Kyuubi's chakra, even at this age. If you train your will, I believe you can control theKyuubi's chakra and keep what happened today from ever happening again. Your mother believed that you would even learn to harness the Kyuubi's chakra someday, which is something she was unable to do. If you want to try, I'll start your training tomorrow. It'll take a lot of hard work to be able to stand up to the Kyuubi's influence, but your mom will help when the time comes and you'll get to meet her then."

Minato smiled somewhat wistfully at that. Naruto sat thinking for a while before wiping away the remainder of his tears and smiling tremulously, "I'll make you both proud, dattebayo!" Minato smiled widely at that, "You already have, Naruto." he responded fondly.

After that Naruto spent a few hours each day training with his father to control Kyuubi. The training itself was tedious for a four year old; especially one with Naruto's energy, but it was also Naruto's favorite part of the day. His dad spent the time focused entirely on him no matter how busy his day had been and had confided to Naruto that he was glad of the excuse to get away from work and spend some time with his son.

The training consisted of spars with his father interspersed with meditation exercises and chakra control exercises. The spars were designed to frustrate him and push him to his limits purposely so that he could test his self-control. The meditation helped his calm down afterwards and taught him patience as well as strengthening his mental energy. The chakra control exercises were by far the hardest, though. Naruto's chakra control was beyond bad. He could barely mold chakra, but he had a lot of it for his age.

His dad told him that it was because the fox was in his body from such an early age, its chakra was always leaking into his system and mixing in, making his reserves large and unwieldy. Still, he'd need precise chakra control if he were going to use his comparatively small amount of chakra to control the fox's chakra one day. There was nothing for it but to slowly but surely improve over time, and so Naruto stubbornly spent several hours alone each day training his chakra control and meditating. He also spent a considerable amount of time training his general skills, which his dad and his ANBU watchers would sometimes help him with. On days where he did particularly well, his dad would ruffle his hair and smile at him proudly before calling a break to take him to get Ramen as a reward.

Naruto knew from conversations with his ANBU watchers that the council had given Minato a great deal of trouble over him. They had agreed to make Naruto's status as a Jinchuuriki an S-rank secret and keep it from all civilians not on the civilian council and any ninja that were Chuunin rank or lower and hadn't been involved in the Kyuubi attack. His dad had argued that Naruto would be in enough danger just being his son; if it were known that he was a Jinchuuriki too he would stand to be targeted by any and all of the other villages. They had reluctantly agreed, but after the fight with Neji, the civilians on the council were claiming that the Yondaime was endangering the children of the village and many of the ninja on the council wanted to keep Naruto out of the academy.

Minato dismissed this as ridiculous; an untrained Jinchuuriki is far more dangerous to the civilian population, but he couldn't dismiss all their concerns. So he agreed to isolate and train Naruto personally until he was ready to join the academy. In exchange, there would be no further restrictions put on Naruto afterwards provided he did nothing to earn them. What the ANBU told him was that his father had vouched for him so that he wouldn't be locked up or killed and would be allowed to go to the academy with the other kids. What they didn't say, but what Naruto could guess, was that if anymore incidents like the one with Neji occurred the consequences for him and his father would be much more serious.

So Naruto trained hard and when he was seven his dad deemed his control good enough to enter the academy. At the breakfast table the morning of his first day at the academy, Minato talked to him about what to expect. Minato warned him that he would still need to work on his control everyday because his seal would weaken, as he got older. He also reluctantly explained to Naruto that his reception at the academy might not be the warmest.

Minato sighed, a tired sound Naruto had gotten used to. He knew how hard his father worked and did everything he could to ease his father's worries. That's why he'd started pulling pranks on his father whenever he got too serious or too weary. Most people would be annoyed, but those times were some of the few in which Minato would laugh and relax. He always talked about how Kushina used to pull pranks on him, too, and how proud she would be of her son becoming such an accomplished prankster at such a young age. He was careful not to prank his father when he was genuinely busy, though. The ANBU were less amused when the boy started pranking them too. Still, they put up with the treatment from their Hokage's young son anyway because the pranks marked the rare occasions the boy would smile and laugh when his father was absent.

So as he listened to his father sigh, he had to fight the urge to pull out one of the small water balloons in his utility pouch and throw it in his dad's face. Somehow, he didn't think the effort would be appreciated much at the moment. "After the fight with Neji, I had to allow the parents to explain to their children what happened. That was the other stipulation the council managed to stick me with." He grimaced. "Sorry about that, I would have gotten that idea thrown out too, but they reasoned it would be worse if people were allowed to come up with their own explanations, which is true. As a result, though, the children and teachers at the academy know you carry the Kyuubi and may treat you badly or be afraid of you. Honestly, the best you can hope for, at first, is that they will ignore you. It's not going to be easy, but..."

Minato got on his knees in front of Naruto's chair and clasped the boy's small hands in his own. It always astonished him how a child so small could bear such a large burden so well. "The reason they will act that way is because they don't know you, all they know is that you're a Jinchuuriki, so they'll assume the worst. It's not fair, but it is something that you can change. Let them get to know you and most, if not all, of them ought to start treating you better."

Minato smiled mischievously. "Off the record, I suggest you prank the hell out of anyone that gives you trouble. You know what they say; don't get mad, get even." He became serious again. "They're just regular people, Naruto, just like you. They're capable of kindness and cruelty, strength and weakness, fear and sorrow just like everyone is. They love their precious people and feel sadness and rage when those people are taken from them. Promise me you wont give up on them. Try to forgive them. I know you can bring out the best in them, even though they're inclined towards their worst where you're concerned. Please promise me that you wont give up on the people of this village, Naruto."

Naruto had never seen his father plead with anyone before and couldn't help but do as he was asked. "I promise, dad, I wont ever give up and I always keep my word, dattebayo!" His dad grinned and hugged him, "I know, Naruto. No matter what happens today or in the future, don't forget that I'm proud of you and I love you."  
Naruto grinned, "I love you too, dad!"

Thinking the right moment had come; Naruto broke the water balloon in his hand and let the water run down the back of his father's neck. "Aaagghh! Naruto!" Minato pulled back and gave him a half-hearted glare while trying not to laugh. "Finish getting ready while I go change my shirt, brat."

His father dropped him off at the academy, despite the usual need for secrecy. It wasn't really a secret anymore, although the laws hadn't been revoked. After the parents told the children that had been at the park that Naruto carried the Kyuubi, the children told the others, until it became more well-known that Naruto was a Jinchuuriki than that he was the Hokage's son. The children probably thought the Hokage was just keeping an eye on him, although anyone with eyes could tell they were father and son. But still, nobody talked about it, and any speculating children were quieted immediately. Even that most non-secret of secrets did its part in keeping him safe from assassins, after all; as long as his parentage wasn't publicly acknowledged, spies couldn't be sure they had the right boy and that could make all the difference.

After his dad left, Naruto felt nervousness creeping up on him, but mindful of his promise, he plastered a bright smile on his face and entered his new classroom. The children did double takes and moved out of his way fearfully, but he just kept smiling and took a seat in the middle of the room. There was an empty space to either side of him as the class settled in, but he continued to ignore the situation in favor of examining his new classmates and teacher. The teacher was a young looking chuunin who introduced himself as Iruka and had a scar running over the bridge of his nose and onto his cheeks. He kept shooting nervous and slightly angry looks at Naruto, although he had the decency to try to hide them. Naruto smiled at the man reassuringly, matching names to faces as the man called roll. At the same time he couldn't help but think that the man wasn't succeeding at instilling much confidence in the other kids if he was afraid of one of them.

When the man called Naruto's name, he jumped up excitedly, trying to make a good impression, "Hi everyone! I'm Uzumaki Naruto, nice to meet you!" The room was silent, you could hear a pin drop. Naruto let out a foxy grin, undaunted before raising his hands in a half-ram seal. The grin made several of his classmates shiver in fear, noting his elongated canines. Naruto ignored them, merely calling out, "Oiroke no Jutsu!" A puff of smoke revealed a buxom and very naked blond who batted her eyelashes at Iruka-sensei and cooed, "And I'm Uzumaki Naruko, pleasure to meet you, handsome." The man's eyes bulged and he fell backwards with a bloody nose.

The other children were stunned before Naruto turned back into himself and fell into his chair helplessly laughing and pointing at Iruka saying, "I got you! Hahahaha!" The other children reacted belatedly, some of the boys holding their noses and some laughing right along with him. The girls blushed furiously and two of them, a blond he'd heard called Ino and a pink-haired girl named Sakura punched him on the head simultaneously. He whined and clutched his head in mock agony, but secretly he was happy. The classroom had already lightened up considerably and two of his classmates had felt brave enough to hit him. If this was the reaction he got by being a goofball, he silently swore to avoid being serious as much as possible when lives weren't on the line.

A few people reacted differently, however, which intrigued him. There was a girl with pupil-less eyes like Neji who blushed like the other girls but unlike the other girls, fainted dead away, which he thought was hilarious but a little worrisome. One boy with a high gray collar and shades didn't react at all. There was another boy too with pineapple hair who sat next to a fat boy that stared and munched his chips unbelievably fast. Naruto thought the first boy's name was Shikamaru and couldn't help but notice the intelligent and somewhat knowing gleam in the boy's eyes before he muttered, "Troublesome." and put his head down on his desk to go back to sleep. One boy smelled like dog and laughed louder than all the others, but was otherwise not noteworthy. And finally, there was a boy with hair that stood up in the back comically who huffed and muttered, "Idiot." before turning away dismissively. Interesting. He'd noticed a long time ago that ninja tended to have weird quirks and personality traits and he could already tell which of the students had already started developing theirs. It wasn't a sure thing, but he had a good idea now which students would be his comrades in the future. He grinned roguishly, looking forward to having these people at his side in the future.

His thoughts were quickly interrupted, however, when Iruka came to and lurched to his feet. The man's head somehow seemed much bigger than it ought to be and Naruto could see the explosion coming. "Everyone shut up! Naruto, detention during lunch! Now, pay attention to the lesson!" Everyone settled down and Naruto grinned, already planning his next prank.  
By the end of the day he'd managed to get him after class detention as well and frustrate a very stressed-out Iruka by responding with non-answers to every question the man asked him. He felt a bit bad for the flustered Chuunin, but didn't let it faze him. As his dad suggested, the only way to get the villagers to relax around him was to surprise them out of their fear. So he was going to dedicate himself to surprising and annoying the villagers in harmless ways for the rest of his time at the academy. He could always worry about being respected when he became a genin.

Not that he was under any illusions about some of the older villagers coming around so easily. His dad had explained that as stupid as it was, some of the villagers blamed him for the Kyuubi attack itself. He figured that they would come around one day or not at all, but it wasn't really his concern. All he could do was not give up like he'd promised his dad. So there he was cleaning up basically the entire academy single-handedly under Iruka's watchful eye when he felt a shiver crawl its way up his spine. A second later he smelled the familiar, sharp scent of several peoples blood and knew that something very bad was happening. For him to be able to smell blood from so far away meant there must be a lot...

"Neko-san, I smell blood. A lot of it." Naruto said clearly. Iruka looked at him puzzled for a second and opened his mouth, but before he could ask what Naruto was talking about, an ANBU with a cat mask and long purple hair appeared next to Naruto. Iruka blinked, twice.

"Can you tell where it's coming from, Naruto-kun?" the ANBU asked.

Naruto scrunched up his nose and sniffed the air a couple times. "It's hard to tell from in here, but probably south-east."

Neko frowned, "All that's over there is the Uchiha compound." She turned to Iruka, "Excuse us, Iruka-san, I'm afraid Naruto's punishment will have to wait until later. I suggest you lock up here and head home quickly, there seems to be some trouble."

Before Iruka could respond, the ANBU picked up Naruto and disappeared via shunshin. The last thing Iruka heard from the pair was Naruto's far too cheerful, "See you tomorrow, Iruka-sensei!" Iruka couldn't help but note, 'he acts like this sort of thing happens everyday. What a strange boy.'

Neko ran towards the Hokage residence carrying Naruto. Once certain that they weren't being pursued, she stopped and radioed for the nearest ANBU patrol. "This is Neko. Who's closest to the Uchiha Compound?" she broadcasted. Torii immediately responded, "Me and Nezumi are closest."

"Naruto-kun smelled a lot of blood coming from that direction, can you check it out while I take him home?" Neko asked urgently. Not waiting for an answer, she picked up Naruto again and sped off.

Torii gave a quick, "On it. Out." before him and his partner rushed towards the Uchiha clan compound. It was well-known in ANBU that little Naruto's senses were better than most and his sense of smell in particular could rival some of the Inuzuka's dog's noses. So if ANBU were told that Naruto smelled blood, they would look until they found the source.

Torii hung back as they approached the compound's entrance, expecting trouble. Standard procedure for two-man ANBU patrols was that one, often the more experienced of the two, would engage the enemy on first contact while the other stayed back long enough to radio for backup. The man in the rat mask was the senior of the two, so he took point as they entered the compound.

They were completely unprepared for the sight that greeted them. Torii nearly dropped his radio at the sight. The streets were awash with blood in the dimming red-tinted dusk. The silence was eerie and crows were already gathering near bodies splayed at unnatural angles, pecking at sightless eyes. The smell of death hung heavily in the late summer air. Fortunately the bodies hadn't started decaying yet, but it was only a matter of time before the stench of rancid meat was added to the mix.

Upon hearing groans from a few of the downed clan members, Torii came back to himself and radioed for backup and a medical team as calmly and quickly as he could. Meanwhile he and Nezumi were running through the streets, trying to find the killers. They arrived at the Uchiha main house just in time to see a young teenage boy clad in black step out of the front door. His long black hair was pulled back in a familiar low ponytail and his sword was covered in a mix of fresh red blood on the blade and drying, brownish blood around the hilt.

The killer was Uchiha Itachi, the heir of the Uchiha clan and the captain of one of ANBU's own squads. The fourteen year old hadn't been a captain even a year yet, but he was considered one of the most efficient of them all. 'Brutally efficient', thought Torii somewhat hysterically. He knew they were outmatched, even though the boy's eyes were trailing blood down his cheeks from overuse. These eyes were different from the ones the Uchiha usually wielded, and Torii's instincts told him that that was very, very, bad for them.

Torii started to radio the killer's identity while Nezumi distracted Itachi, already knowing that neither of them was going to survive. Before he could, however, he felt a sharp pain to the back of his neck and started to black out. He tried to yell to Nezumi, but realized it was futile when a black blur moved past him to knock out his partner the same way. 'Damn, didn't even sense him' he thought as he slipped into unconsciousness.

Looking up from the two unconscious men, the black-shrouded figure signaled Itachi to go, which he quickly did. After ensuring the boy's escape past Konoha's walls, the shadow disappeared.

In a bunker accessible only by Hiraishin, the Yondaime Hokage peeled off his black coverings grimly before using Hiraishin to transport himself back to the seal placed in the desecrated Uchiha compound.  
-R&R


	2. Sasuke, Meet Gamachan

Hey, as an apology for being gone so long, here's another chapter. Hmm, being more honest, though, the truth is that I got stuck about half way through this chapter and was finally able to finish it thanks to my new fic. Yay! Enjoy.

Disclaimer. Do I still need to say it?

When the ANBU response team arrived in the Uchiha compound and sought out their comrades that had fallen out of radio contact a couple minutes before, they found the Hokage trying to rouse the unconscious ANBU outside of the Uchiha main house. The majority went to keep watch over the med team and look for survivors while a few took up positions around the Hokage and the downed ANBU. After issuing orders and radioing for an Oinin team, the ANBU commander used shunshin to appear at the Hokage's side. The Hokage had relinquished the care of the two ANBU to the medics and was watching while they were being looked over. The silver-haired commander scanned the area while waiting for orders from his superior, keeping a sharp eye out for signs of where the perpetrators might have gone.

The Hokage looked on as the medics finished looking over the two and determined them fit enough to be woken for questioning. A moment later and the two ANBU were jerking awake from the smelling salts held up to their masks. After a moment to recover they quickly stood and reported to their Hokage.

Minato listened patiently while the two men explained that, according to Neko, Naruto had smelled the blood and alerted her. He kept his face carefully blank as they told of how they had found Itachi with a bloody sword and how a second assailant all in black had knocked them out too quickly for them to react. Once they were finished, he turned to his commander.

"Inu, as of now I am classifying Uchiha Itachi as an s-ranked nuke-nin. Have our best available Oinin team track him and find out what they can about his destination and any other allies he may have. There should be articles with his scent on them in the main house, they have my permission to take whatever will help. Have another team try to ascertain the identity and location of Itachi's assistance, we don't know whether they went with Itachi or not. I don't, however, want any team to engage them. We don't know how much support he's managed to arrange. Information first. I want you to lead an ANBU team at a distance in case of ambush and summon me if things get ugly. I don't want to take any chances in this situation. Dismissed and good luck." The Hokage looked at his student for a moment with an unreadable expression on his face before nodding once and walking towards the entrance to the house that the two ANBU had reported seeing Itachi coming out of last.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Inu disappeared in a silver streak of shunshin to select teams and carry out his orders.

As Minato approached the door it opened and a few med-nin and ANBU slowly started filing out, carrying two bodies. One was a woman; he recognized her as Kushina's old friend Mikoto, the Uchiha clan heads' wife. Or widow, rather. The other was a painfully tiny boy Naruto's size. To his relief they were both breathing peacefully, dead to the carnage around them. They didn't appear to have a scratch on them, and he wondered briefly what Itachi had shown them in the genjutsu he had no doubt subjected them to.

He followed after the med-nin, not interrupting their work until the two had been placed on the ground at the end of one of the neat rows of survivors being gathered in the Uchiha square. Anyone that was too seriously injured to move wouldn't be here, of course, but everyone else was brought together for triage, treatment and protection. He let the sounds and smells of the hastily made camp wash over him for a moment; the smell of blood, the groans of the wounded and waking, the nearly silent swish of ninja moving quickly nearly overwhelmed by the harsh orders being barked by the medics. The red sun had long since set, leaving visible only the impression of shadows moving through the thickening gloom.

Before the nin that had been treating Mikoto and Sasuke could move away, Minato stepped into his path. "What's their status?" he asked immediately.

The man snapped to attention quickly before rattling off, "They're going to be fine, Hokage-sama, there seems to be some minor brain trauma brought on by the genjutsu used on them, but it's fairly mild. We'll be able to wake them later and release them afterwards."

Minato nodded, "Good. When you get a chance, inform the medic-in-charge that after they are cleared they are to be released to the ANBU guards I'll assign them. They'll stay in the Hokage manor, I don't want to risk whoever did this changing their minds and coming back to finish the job."

The medic bowed and got back to work after a tired, "Hai, Hokage-sama."

After assigning two guards specifically to the remnant of the Uchiha main family, the Hokage stepped back to watch the proceedings from behind and a bit to the side of one of the torches that had just been lit. He'd chosen the position to allow everyone in the square a relatively unobstructed view of him. Similarly, he made no effort to mask his chakra, consciously keeping it mild and even. The Hokage stood impassive sentinal over the suffering of the patients, harried hustle of the medics and tense watchfulness of the guards and in so doing, provided reassurance to those shaken by this tragedy.

Privately, however, Minato's thoughts focused on the uselessness and hypocrisy of his current position. He couldn't help the situation without upsetting the balance of the operation by his mere presence. Besides that, he knew the face of every one of the survivors, having struck them down himself. All of the most seriously injured (read: maimed, never to see active duty again) were stable enough to be moved and were being tended to in the square at that very moment. All he could really do to help the situation was to stay put and wait to see if Kakashi needed him.

After all, the Hokage, he thought with a touch of bitterness, wasn't supposed to leave the village unless on a diplomatic mission or unless the village was threatened. And this situation, gruesome as it was, wouldn't count. So that's how Minato found himself standing around in Uchiha Square like a mannequin, doing absolutely nothing to aid the crisis that he himself had sanctioned. He was still worried about Madara and what would happen to Itachi-kun, but the best he could do for his people right now, pitiful though it was, was to stand there and hope that his presence was a comfort to them.

He missed Naruto. He should have known that the boy would smell the blood, but he ought to have been back home by the time they'd started the operation. Minato tried to keep his lips from twitching, not wanting to seem disrespectful of the suffering around him. He was sure that the reason his boy had been there so late was because he had gotten into so much trouble that he'd been put in detention after only the first day.

Minato hoped Naruto wouldn't be too off-put by the blood to be his normal cheerful self. He desperately needed a distraction from the guilt he was currently feeling. He could only imagine Itachi's current mental state. Minato silently cursed as the minutes ticked by. If Madara killed Itachi-kun after all this, he swore by all the gods that he would find a way to emasculate the man with a rusty knife. As it was, he would find a way to thwart the man's plans, even if the best he could do was to protect Naruto and Konoha until Naruto became strong enough to deal with the bastard himself.

Contrary to what most seemed to think, the only time the Hokage got to play hero was during a direct attack on Konoha... and he was sure that Madara wouldn't make that mistake again until he was sure he'd win. Minato knew after what happened to Kushina that Madara would come for Kyuubi again. He wouldn't be able to protect his son forever; he'd have to let him go out on missions once he had a team. He wouldn't be able to ensure his safety.

The only thing he could do for his son was to raise him as well and as happily as he could considering his status as a Jinchuuriki. He could prepare Naruto to defend himself and hope that with time Konoha would want to defend his son too. He would help his son as much as he could, while also doing his duty as Hokage and working behind the scenes to throw a wrench in Madara's plans. And when he had done everything he could, he would wait and watch. And so, once again, he steeled himself to do just that. That's what a sentinel is for, after all.

* * *

Kakashi finally let out the breath he'd been holding. They were gone. The man that had met Itachi had made his skin crawl, especially considering the uncomfortable feeling he'd had that the man was perfectly aware of their presence.

The tracker team had followed Itachi to the border of Ame where he'd met with an odd orange-masked man dressed all in black. The man's strangeness was only added to by the fact that the mask was missing the left eyehole, although Kakashi wasn't one to talk on that particular matter. However, despite the stranger's comical appearance and the light-hearted mocking banter he'd directed towards the stone-faced Uchiha killer, Kakashi's instincts from being around his sensei so much told him clearly that he had just met one of the most dangerous ninja alive and was lucky to have survived. This impression was only reinforced by the way the man had sucked Itachi into his spiral mask only to follow a moment later. He'd never seen anyone other than his sensei use a technique like that.

He raised a slightly shaking hand to absently readjust his dog-mask and then straightened his back, calm again. Kakashi signalled his ANBU and a moment later they were whistling through the trees back to Konoha at their best speed. He had to warn Minato-sensei about this threat as soon as possible.

* * *

Naruto whistled to himself as he stood on a stool, cutting vegetables for dinner. Not that he enjoyed anything that had to do with vegetables, of course, but he and his dad had a deal. As long as he made a vegetable side dish to go with it, his dad would let him make ramen every time it was his turn to cook. Well, he also made him eat the vegetables before he could take even a bite of his ramen, but it was a necessary evil if it allowed him to have ramen several times a week.

He paused in his cutting for a moment to tilt his head to the side curiously, "Neko-san, is dad going to be late to dinner?" Naruto had heard the crackle of Neko's headset and someone mentioning his father-as well as an estimate of the number of surviving Uchiha. Naruto frowned grimly, that sounded very, very bad. He'd smelled a lot of blood, but it seemed like it came from a lot of different people after all. He hoped his dad was going to be ok.

Neko spoke quietly from her guard position outside the window, knowing he would hear her, "Hai, Naruto-kun. There's also going to be two guests that will be staying here for the time being."

"Who?" Naruto asked, getting out more ingredients and hoping their guests liked ramen. Bah! They'd have to be heathens not to like ramen.

"Uchiha Mikoto and Uchiha Sasuke, the last of the Uchiha main house left in Konoha." Neko answered carefully, and Naruto heard the words she didn't say, knowing better than to ask.

So something happened to Fugaku and Itachi and one or both of them had left Konoha, either by force or willingly. He wondered what would become of the Uchiha now. Well, he'd undoubtedly hear about it eventually. His father never explicitly told him about Konoha's affairs, but he made no real effort to keep him from hearing and Naruto's ears were very sensitive.

Actually, he knew more about Konoha's affairs and politics than anyone but his father suspected. He knew that there was a great deal of political intrigue and he knew about most of the people who had power in the village. That's also how he knew about Danzo and Root. He suspected that the reason his father let him learn so much was because his status in the village was more precarious than anybodies given that he was a Jinchuuriki. His father was preparing him to look after himself no matter what happened, no matter whether his enemies were inside or outside the village.

And that's how he knew that his father loved him more than anything. Minato would do everything in his power to help him grow strong and happy, strong enough to stand against the Kyuubi and anyone that might wish to hurt him. He was already giving his son the tools necessary to win over the villagers and keep the council from controlling him. His father would fight to protect Konoha to ensure that his son had a chance at having a home and a happy future. That's why Naruto was never selfish and always tried to make his father happy. His father was giving everything for him like his mother did and Naruto would walk through hell itself to see that it didn't go to waste. Konoha would become his home; he would earn the acceptance of even those who hated him and nobody was going to get in his way, not even the Kyuubi.

As he stir-fried the vegetables and kept a wary eye on the soup for the ramen to make sure it wouldn't boil, he reflected that it was probably weird for any child his age to be so single-minded. Hell, he still needed a stool to cook, a lot of kids his age didn't even know how to turn on a stove. He hadn't been around children since the incident with Neji, but none of the kids at the academy had such determination, even though they were training to be ninja. Well, they would eventually realize how cruel life could be, and no doubt it would be up to him to help see them through it. He wondered how Sasuke was taking whatever it is that happened to his clan. The boy had seemed aloof and proud, always measuring other people's worth and finding then wanting. He was probably just as harsh with himself, though. A kid like that wouldn't take it well when he was powerless to protect his family. Naruto winced in sympathy for a moment, knowing that he wouldn't have taken it well either.

Even with all his training, Naruto knew that losing his father would make holding back the Kyuubi impossible. As a final test of his training his father had taken him a distance from Konoha and cast a genjutsu on him showing Minato being assassinated. Naruto was immediately engulfed in dark red chakra and lost track of what happened around him as he burned from the inside out. When he woke up, it was to find himself surrounded by bodies of leaf ninja, ANBU that had protected him and befriended him. Kakashi-niisan and several others he recognized were among them. Well, part of that might be due to the fact that their bodies were mangled and burned to the point of being nearly unrecognizable. He bent over and vomited until his stomach was empty and then he cried, weeping tears of despair and remorse. He barely noticed when strong arms wrapped around him and held him, but when his father's scent filled his nose he jerked back in disbelief.

His father was crying too and Naruto sobered abruptly as he tried to figure out what had happened. He looked around, realizing that the bodies were gone and it didn't take long to realize he'd had a genjutsu cast on him. He looked at his father in dawning realization and horror, but when he saw the way his father guiltily flinched away from his gaze he couldn't bring himself to get angry at him. His dad never cried or looked guilty, even when talking about his mother, although he knew the man felt guilty about letting her sacrifice herself. He never blamed Naruto, though.

So instead of yelling Naruto neutrally asked, "Why?"

Minato took a deep breath and looked him in the eyes, "I debated over the last month whether or not this was a good idea. But in the end I decided that it would be better for it to be a genjutsu than reality. After I cast the first genjutsu, you broke it and pulled two tails worth of chakra from the fox. I used the Hiraishin seal on you to get close enough to use a strong chakra suppression seal and then cast a second genjutsu for when you woke up. I'm going to try to always be there for you Naruto, but I'm mortal like anyone else and one day I'm going to die. As a Hokage, the chances are good that I'll die in combat. If that happens, I don't want you to break the seal and kill yourself and everyone around you. You already know that anger can pull on the fox's chakra, but grief can too. I wanted to wait until later to do this, but the Leaf has many powerful enemies and I thought it better not to wait. There's also the possibility that someone might use genjutsu on you to bring the fox out purposely and I think you know who I mean." Minato looked at him piercingly for a moment before deflating. "I'm sorry, Naruto."

His father's eyes were filled with so much regret and sadness that Naruto wanted to start crying again. Instead he hugged him and said simply, "It's okay."

Minato hugged him tightly and only then did Naruto let himself think about what he had seen and what his father had told him. And what he had done. Because if that genjutsu had been real (and it could have been) he would have become a murderer of everyone he cared for, all the people that protected him. It was a terrifying thought and he vowed then and there to never let it happen. For the sake his parents and everything he held dear, he'd find a way to keep that promise or die trying. He was just about to tell his father so when exhaustion overwhelmed him and he fell into unconsciousness.

Later his father told him that after Naruto had passed out, he'd teleported them to the hospital and had him examined by the head medic. He didn't need to ask to know that his father hadn't slept since he'd been admitted. Apparently there was no permanent damage, but the head medic cautioned that too many incidents like that would shorten his lifespan. His father reassured him that no damage had been done to the seal, although the more he used the Kyuubi's chakra, the faster the seal would weaken. And that's how he came to the conclusion that even if he managed to fully control the Kyuubi's chakra, he should never use it carelessly.

Oh well, he would just keep working on his control and hope for the best for now. There wasn't really much else he could do until he mastered sealing. Yup. His father trusted him now to keep up his meditation and chakra control exercises on his own. Now that he'd entered the academy, their training time would be dedicated to sparring, fuinjutsu and ninjutsu. He couldn't wait to get started, but first his father wanted him to get used to going to the academy. Hmph, as if. But maybe now that that Sasuke kid was staying here they could spar. He never had a chance against his father, of course, and it would be nice to have a challenge. The kid would probably need some time to recover first, but maybe they could help each other out by becoming friends.

With that thought in mind Naruto cheerfully set the table for four and then placed a glass of water and a plate on the windowsill with cheese and crackers and a sliced apple on it before calling quitely, "Here you go, Neko."

No one really approved of his tendency to feed the ANBU guarding him, but he persisted anyway, even ignoring his father on the matter. Eventually the ANBU caved, most of them anyway and would take a break to enjoy a snack during their shift. Besides, it gave them a chance to practice eating with a mask on while still staying alert. A useful skill for an ANBU. One ANBU, eagle, always refused saying it was his duty to protect the Yondaime's heir and he wouldn't accept distractions, but Naruto had eventually worn him down by asking how he could protect Naruto well when he was hungry and thirsty. Even eagle couldn't argue with that. Of course, Kakashi-niisan always refused saying that if he had time to eat then he would rather read his Icha Icha. And even Naruto didn't know what to say to that.

Hmm, Sasuke would probably want a shower and something to change into before dinner and the same with Mikoto-san. Naruto went into the room with his mom's stuff and ignored the slight tightness in his stomach when he grabbed one of her sweaters and a pair of pajama pants. Dad had told him once that Mikoto-san had been a friend of his mother's, so he didn't think she'd mind. He then grabbed his navy blue pajama set and the black silk boxers that Kakashi-niisan had bought as a gag gift for his seventh birthday, saying that every man needed a pair of sexy silk boxers. Dad had punched him when he found out. He shook his head ruefully, he'd never worn them and never would now, but he had a feeling that Sasuke wouldn't accept anything with bright colors. Emo brat.

Naruto took them to the two guest rooms and set them down while he aired out the futons. He'd make them up while they took their showers, he decided. After that he took the clothing and two towels and set them outside the bathing area. He also unwrapped two toothbrushes and set them out. The less those two would have to worry about tonight, the better. He decided to meditate in the living room while he waited, but before he could sit down the doorbell rang. He waited a moment, but when Neko didn't attack the visitors he opened the door wide with a bright smile.

"Hello, Mikoto-san, Sasuke. Come in and make yourselves at home." Naruto greeted cheerfully and stepped back to give them room to enter.

Mikoto bowed politely and in a quiet voice said, "Excuse our intrusion, Naruto-kun."

After they'd gotten inside, Naruto nodded to their two ANBU guards and closed the door.

"I'll show you the guest quarters so you can take a bath and get changed before dinner." He started towards the guest rooms, already trying to forget Sasuke's vacant stare and Mikoto's pinched expression.

"We didn't bring any clothes with us, Naruto-kun." Mikoto said tiredly.

"Don't worry about it, I've set out some clothes that ought to fit you both. And the boxers I left for you haven't been worn, Sasuke." Naruto said over his shoulder. He didn't get a response, but then he hadn't been expecting one.

"Thank you." Mikoto said instead.

Naruto just smiled at the woman and all but shooed them into the bathroom. After he made their beds, he settled down in the living room and meditated until they came out. He opened his eyes and had to suppress a giggle, Sasuke's vacant stare had been replaced by a scowl and he looked incredibly uncomfortable, although whether it was because of the black silk boxers or the navy blue pajamas with green toads all over it was hard to tell. Sasuke saw his lips twitch and started outright glaring and Mikoto looked a cross between relieved and concerned that her son was no longer staring off.

Naruto just ignored the boy and went to the dining room where he started dishing up three bowls. The two Uchiha followed him and sat down, but before Mikoto could say anything, Naruto spoke, "We shouldn't wait for my dad, he's probably gonna be home late."

Mikoto nodded and sat quietly, while Sasuke stared blankly out the window. Naruto nearly shook his head before he caught himself, thinking that distracting the boy would be harder than he expected. Deciding to leave it for now, he chirped out an "Itadakimasu!" and proceeded to inhale his food.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Mikoto's shocked expression while she watched him consume his meal and also caught the slight revulsion of Sasuke's face as he picked at his meal. Still, he didn't press them into conversation like he might have otherwise, just kept eating.

His father came in after his second bowl, looking tired and slightly sick to his stomach. This worried Naruto since there was very little that could make his father look like that. He wanted to run and give his father a hug like usual, but with Sasuke here decided it might be better not to.

Instead he grinned, saying, "Okaeri, Tou-san!" (Welcome home, dad)

Minato smiled tiredly, replying, "Tadaima." (I'm back)

Sasuke looked a little shocked at this, apparently not realizing the rather obvious fact that he was Minato's son. Again, he ignored the other boy in favor of handing the bowl of ramen he'd been dishing up to his father and then making another for himself.

"Ramen again?" Minato observed as he took off his cloak and sat down.

"Of course, you can never have too much ramen!" Naruto sputtered indignantly.

"If you say so." Minato rolled his eyes and grinned.

"I do say so, dattebayo!" Naruto glared before digging into his meal with fervor.

Sasuke was starting to look a little green and Mikoto asked eyes a little wide, "Is this a common occurrence?"

It wasn't clear whether she was referring to the food or the byplay, but either way Minato nodded with a soft smile, "At least three times a week."

Both Sasuke and Mikoto blinked, staring at him opening for a moment before recalling their manners.

"I see. Thank you for allowing us to stay here." Mikoto thanked Minato humbly.

"It's not a problem, you can stay as long as you like until everything gets sorted out." Minato replied.

"The ones that aren't in the hospital are staying in the rooms usually reserved for foreign dignitaries, correct?" Mikoto failed to mention that they were under guard, something he's heard over Neko's radio, but Naruto could hear a bit of suppressed tension in her voice.

"Don't worry, Mikoto-san, I will personally vouch for their safety." Minato replied. Again the 'unless they do something stupid' was unspoken. His father though, kept any tension he might be feeling out of his voice. Naruto had become accustomed to conversations like this when he used to hang out in the Hokage's office, playing in the corner. After all, he had spent enough time with the man to be able to read his father better than even most ninja. Naruto shot a subtle glance at Sasuke that he was sure his father at least noticed and saw the boy staring off again. A distraction was in order.

He picked up his empty water glass and gestured with it towards his father, "Tou-san, could you get me some orange juice, please?" He asked in a slightly whiny voice.

He was pretty sure very few would recognize the amused gleam in his dad's eyes before he nonchalantly said, "Sure." Naruto was seated to his right and as he leaned forward to take the glass he abruptly toppled over, chair and all. Naruto burst out laughing while Mikoto looked alarmed. Sasuke's eyes widened in startlement and disbelief. Minato tried to get up, but unfortunately found his chair to be firmly glued to his ass.

"Naruto!" The Hokage yelled, but it didn't take a genius to tell that he was more embarrassed than angry.

The poor man tried to stand, but only managed to reverse crab walk into a sitting position. He knew better than to try to pull the chair off, that would only serve to tear his pants. Whatever glue Naruto used was slow drying and strong.

"Dammit Naruto, I just bought these pants! And that was after you ruined my last pair!" Minato complained loudly. Naruto heard Neko and the other ANBU snorting softly and stuck his tongue out.

"Serves you right!" Naruto laughed.

"And what exactly have I done to deserve this?" Minato asked, bemused.

"You put off my training!" Naruto pouted.

"And you think this is going to get me to change me mind?" Minato asked, amused.

"You wouldn't change your mind anyway, but at least you know how I feel at the academy!" Naruto shot back.

"I did go to the academy once too, you know." Minato pointed out before sighing in defeat and excusing himself, using Hirashin to teleport, leaving both the chair and his pants behind.

While they were waiting for Minato to get dressed, Naruto surveyed Mikoto and Sasuke. The woman looked a combination of shell-shocked and amused at the utter absurdity of the situation and Sasuke was glaring at him jealously, no doubt jealous at the attention his father was giving him. The boy's father probably ignored him. Well, everyone has got their own problems, and for him to get jealous without knowing anything was...stupid. Although he did have an awesome dad.

Smiling to himself a bit, Naruto went to get some orange juice only to be hit over the head all of a sudden. He only barely managed to not drop his glass.

"Ouch! Dad! I almost dropped my glass!" Naruto whined as he rubbed his head with his free hand.

"Serves you right." Minato replied with a smug smile, getting a new chair and putting the one with his pants stuck to it in the corner.

Naruto grumbled and pouted while he got his orange juice, watching his father move his famous Yondaime cloak from one chair to the other. That's how he knew his dad had been playing along with his prank. He would never allow damage to be done to his cloak. But it was extremely rare for him to actually catch his father by surprise. It was a game and training in one, and he liked it a lot more than meditation. He grimaced as he drank his orange juice. Dinner was pretty much over by now and he started cleaning up while his dad asked Sasuke whether he wanted to go to the academy tomorrow or not. Sasuke answered in the affirmative and after he and Mikoto offered polite thanks to Naruto for the meal, which he brushed off uncomfortably, they retired to sleep.

Naruto finished cleaning and went to his dad's study.

"Tou-chan? Are you alright?" Naruto asked worriedly.

"Minato looked even more exhausted at that before nodding, "It was a rough day, but it'll be alright, Naruto."

Naruto nodded himself before giving his father a hug goodnight and heading towards the door, "Yah. Well, I'm off to bed. Don't work too late and Tou-chan..." Naruto paused until he had his father's full attention.

"...don't beat yourself up too much, ok? I know you did your best." Naruto finished.

Minato looked stricken for a moment, but when Naruto just smiled reassuringly, he nodded and smiled back a bit as well. "...thanks, Naru-chan."

Naruto nodded and walked to his room, but stopped outside the door, tilting his head and turning his eyes towards the guest rooms. He could hear Sasuke's uneven, labored breathing coming from the room next to Mikoto's and nodded to himself after thinking for a moment.

He got something out of his room and crept quietly towards the guest quarters. His dad undoubtedly noticed, but didn't try to stop him. He silently opened Sasuke's door and crept to the side of the boy's bed. His breathing had evened out when Naruto opened the door, a sure sign he was pretending to sleep and not having a nightmare. Naruto looked at the boy for a moment before putting the object on the bed and quietly leaving.

* * *

Sasuke opened his eyes once he was sure the person had left his room. He'd been a bit scared, but figured it was probably just his mom checking up on him. As he looked to the side of his pillow where he'd heard something being set down, his eyes fell upon a stuffed toy, green with beady eyes and a long tongue sticking out. It was a frog. (Actually it's a toad.)

The boy scrunched his nose up at the toy and threw it on the floor. What was that dobe thinking? What did he think he knew? Although... at least the idiot didn't apologize. The medic had said those words like they had meant something and he had had to resist throwing up in the man's face from sheer disgust. At least Naruto didn't spend all of dinner staring at him in pity or shock like he was a circus attraction. He more or less acted like he didn't know anything had happened and Sasuke had thought he didn't...until the stuffed toy, that is.

Sasuke stayed slumped in the same position as when he threw the toy, staring at the animal's beady eyes. This wasn't his house, these weren't his clothes, this wasn't his life. His life as he knew it ended the moment Itachi killed his father in front of his eyes. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to hold back tears. He wouldn't give the bastard the satisfaction again of making him cry, even if he wasn't here.

He finally got himself under control and opened his eyes again, still looking at the stupid toy that had witnessed his momentary loss of control. He snorted and got out of bed, picking up the toy and carrying it back with him. He put it back where it'd been before and crawled back beneath the covers. He shut his eyes and thought, 'Damn dobe, I'll kick his ass for this tomorrow.' before drifting into a surprisingly dreamless sleep.


End file.
